GREEN RIVER — In a brief Green River City Council meeting, the longest discussion/presentation was regarding the inaugural Mansface Music Festival last month.
Josh Coursey, president of Muley Fanatic Foundation which put on music showcase, told the council that the first-ever event went well but that organizers learned many things to use in helping grow festival in the future.
“It was the first time to take on an endeavor like this. We knew it was going to be a work in progress. We knew it was not going to be a success right out of the gate,” said founder Josh Coursey. “But we knew there would be successes to be had, and there were many.”
The first course of action in preparing for next year is better scheduling. Coursey told the council that planning next year’s event will include not competing again with International Day in Rock Springs and the Pinedale Rendevous.
“There is never going to be a perfect weekend in the summer to avoid everything,” Coursey said. “But if you can avoid something else that is free and where there is a lot of beer drinking going on, there stands a much better chance we can pick up more of those people.”
The bigger focus for the first year was having the equipment to pull of the area’s only event like Mansface Music Festival.
Consider that test an A+.
“We knew we had to get one thing right – the stage, the sound and the lighting,” Coursey said. “We didn’t waste any expense in making sure we did it right. We spent $26,000 to get it right and we did.”
Another big change will be in admission. Coursey said there was plenty of confusion regarding the $30 daily admission and $50 weekend pass to get in which also included valuable raffles.
So, plans are to make things much more clear and affordable. Tentatively, the costs will be just $10 per person, while all kids and seniors get in free.
Organizers also plan to add instate vendors next year.
Coursey offered plenty of praise for all that played a role in making the first one a success. Afterall, even with competing events around the area, the music festival that featured six acts still drew 381 visitors on Friday and 572 on Saturday.
Coursey went on to thank many groups for playing a role in making it success such as the Green River Chamber of Commerce, City of Green River, the police department, the fire department and the Green River High School boys basketball team.
He also thanks White Mountain Lumber. They supplied tents, tables and chairs and did not charge for the supplies after seeing lower-than-expected attendance.
There is an organizational committee now and planning for next year is already underway. Coursey said anyone is welcome to join them for their first meeting, which is set for 6 p.m., Sept. 12 at the Muley Fanatic office.
Nolan Street Water Improvement Project
Two bids were received for the Nolan Street Water Improvement Project. One of the bids was disqualified due to that bidder not being on the WYDOT Prequalified Contractors List.
The only qualified bid came from Longhorn Construction in the amount of $191,904.50. It was accepted.
The project will include the replacement of existing water and sewer mains and services on Nolan Street and the adjacent alley.
Historic Green River Depot
The board voted 6-0 to release the retainage for the Historic Green River Depot remediation project. It has been completed by Ram Environment Services.
It marks the end of a project that had a price tag of $484,693. Approximately $200,00 of that came from an EPA Brownfield Remediation Grant and $75,000 from the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality.
Also approved
- Testing materials for the Nolan Street Water Improvement project.
- State Grant-In Aid of $2,500 for Spaceport Day 2018 which is this weekend.
- Acceptance of the scholarship application to the Sweetwater County Joint And Tourism Board for the 2018 Co-Ed Tough Turkey Volleyball Tournament.
- Accepting donation of a 6-foot utility easement on East Teton Blvd. It was originally donated by a homeowner in 1984 but it discovered that homeowner did not own the property at the time of donation.